Contact: Roy Lloyd, American Bible Society, 212-408-8731, rlloyd@americanbible.org; Rebecca Silver, RLM Pubic Relations, 212-741-5106, abs@rlmpr.com

NEW YORK, Nov. 19 /Christian Newswire/ -- The American Bible Society has announced that Dr. Philip H. Towner will become the Dean of the Nida Institute for Biblical Scholarship at the American Bible Society. He will succeed Dr. Robert Hodgson, who is retiring in mid-2008. Dr. Towner will join the Bible Society staff in February to work with Dr. Hodgson over the several months before Dr. Hodgson's retirement.

The Nida Institute for Biblical Scholarship connects Scripture, Scholarship and Society for the Bible Society. The Institute is named for Dr. Eugene Nida who was the executive secretary for translation at the Bible Society for four decades. It is the center of biblical scholarship and research at the American Bible Society, using its staff and library resources to support the ABS mission in the points of translation, education, quality control, creative services, and support for ABS visibility and media exposure.

Dr. Towner is the Director of Translation Services for the United Bible Societies (UBS), based in Reading, England. The UBS is a fellowship of 145 Bible Societies around the world.

In announcing the appointment, Rev. Dr. Paul Irwin, President of the American Bible Society, said, "I am delighted that Phil Towner will lead our scholarly work. Dr. Towner has earned a world-wide reputation in biblical translation and he will enhance the American Bible Society's standing as a center of excellence in biblical scholarship."

Dr. Towner says, "I am very pleased to have been selected to take up the post of the Dean of the Nida Institute for Biblical Scholarship, and I look forward with great anticipation to joining the American Bible Society team and its mission. The Nida Institute of the American Bible Society is at a very strategic point in its history. A gifted team and important scholarly and translation initiatives already underway form a very strong platform for continued forward movement and development. We intend to increase Bible Society prominence within the worldwide academic community and ensure our ongoing contribution to the mission tasks of Bible translation and training, Scripture Engagement and Biblical Scholarship."

Dr. Hodgson says, "With the appointment of Dr. Phil Towner to the post of Dean of the Nida Institute, the American Bible Society will engage the services of a world-renowned New Testament expert, a distinguished translation scholar, an active churchman, and an executive with wide-ranging experience in management and administration."

Dr. Towner is a graduate of Northwestern College, Roseville, MN, with a B.A. in History and Biblical Criticism. He received his M.A. in New Testament Exegesis from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, Deerfield, IL and his Ph.D in New Testament Exegesis from the University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen Scotland. He is a member of the Institute for Biblical Research, the Society of Biblical Literature, Studiorum Novi Testamenti Societas and the Tyndale Fellowship for Biblical and Theological Research.

At this time Dr. Towner is an Honourary Lecturer in New Testament, University of St. Andrews in Scotland and a Research Professor of New Testament, Biblijne Seminarium Teologiczne in Wroclaw, Poland.

Dr. Towner is the author of many books, articles, essays and reviews. And he also has served on the faculties of Denver Seminary, Denver, CO, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, Scotland, Regent College, Vancouver, B.C. and China Evangelical Seminary, Taipei, Taiwan.

Founded in 1816 and headquartered in New York City, the mission of the American Bible Society is to make the Bible available to every person in a language and format each can understand and afford, so that all people may experience its life-changing message. The American Bible Society Web site is www.Bibles.com.